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Report: Israel Had Hamas’s Battle Plan for a Year

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The New York Times reported Thursday that Israel had Hamas’s battle plan for October 7 for a year, dubbing it the “Jericho Wall,” but that senior analysts concluded that Hamas did not have the desire or the capability to follow through on the blueprint.

The Times reported:

Israeli officials obtained Hamas’s battle plan for the Oct. 7 terrorist attack more than a year before it happened, documents, emails and interviews show. But Israeli military and intelligence officials dismissed the plan as aspirational, considering it too difficult for Hamas to carry out.

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The document circulated widely among Israeli military and intelligence leaders, but experts determined that an attack of that scale and ambition was beyond Hamas’s capabilities, according to documents and officials. It is unclear whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or other top political leaders saw the document, as well.
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Officials privately concede that, had the military taken these warnings seriously and redirected significant reinforcements to the south, where Hamas attacked, Israel could have blunted the attacks or possibly even prevented them.

Israel’s military and intelligence chiefs have taken responsibility for the failure to stop the attack, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has acknowledged that he will face a reckoning, but all have deferred questions about October 7 until after the war. (Read more from “Report: Israel Had Hamas’s Battle Plan for a Year” HERE)

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Surrender: Blinken Tells Israel It Lacks ‘Credit’ to Defeat Hamas

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israel that it lacks “credit” to conduct the kind of military campaign necessary to defeat Hamas, saying that the Biden administration would not tolerate large-scale bombing over months in southern Gaza.

Blinken’s remarks were leaked to the Israeli press. The Times of Israel quoted a transcript of his meeting with Israel’s war cabinet:

Blinken: You can’t operate in southern Gaza in the way you did in the north. There are two million Palestinians there. You need to evacuate fewer people from their homes, be more accurate in the attacks, not hit UN facilities, and ensure that there are enough protected areas [for civilians]. And if not? Then not to attack where there is a civilian population. What is your system of operation?

IDF Chief Herzi Halevi: We follow a number of principles — proportionality, distinction, and the laws of war. There were instances where we attacked on the basis of those principles, and instances where we decided not to attack, because we waited for a better opportunity.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant: The entire Israeli society is united behind the goal of dismantling Hamas, even if it takes months.

Blinken: I don’t think you have the credit for that.

(Read more from “Surrender: Blinken Tells Israel It Lacks ‘Credit’ to Defeat Hamas” HERE)

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Biden Administration Hopes for Extension of Israel-Hamas Ceasefire as Deadline Approaches

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The Biden administration is hoping Israel and Hamas will agree to extend their ceasefire, which is set to expire in a matter of hours.

Israel and Hamas initially agreed to a four-day pause in fighting that would include the release of 50 hostages, held by Hamas or other Gaza-based terrorist groups since Oct. 7, in exchange for the release of three times as many Palestinians held in Israeli jails and a surge of humanitarian aid. They then agreed to extend the deal by two days, which is nearing its expiration.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is set to travel to Israel later this week, said Wednesday that the Biden administration is hoping for both sides to agree to another extension because it would mean the release of additional hostages.

“What it has enabled, first and foremost, is hostages being released, coming home, being reunited with their families,” Blinken said. “It’s also enabled us to surge humanitarian assistance into the people of Gaza who so desperately need it. So its continuation, by definition, means that more hostages would be coming home, more assistance would be getting in.”

Israeli officials indicated in the beginning of the ceasefire that they were willing to extend it one day for every 10 hostages Hamas agrees to release. Hamas and the other groups took roughly 240 people hostage during the terrorist attacks. (Read more from “Biden Administration Hopes for Extension of Israel-Hamas Ceasefire as Deadline Approaches” HERE)

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Hamas Hostages’ Whereabouts Unknown, Complicating Negotiations for Release

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The Argentine news outlet Infobae reported on Sunday, citing “sources familiar with the details of the [hostage] agreement,” that the jihadist terrorist organization Hamas does not know the location of some of the estimated 240 people abducted from Israel on October 7, complicating the group’s ability to negotiate for their release.

The Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani appeared to verify that report on Sunday, telling the Financial Times that some of the hostages were “missing” and that Hamas would allegedly use the time bought in a truce Israel agreed to in exchange for the release of hostages to find others they have allegedly lost. Qatar allows Hamas, a genocidal jihadist terror organization, to maintain its “political” operations base in Doha and has been helping Hamas communicate with the government of Israel and its allies.

The whereabouts of the hostages not in direct Hamas custody remain unknown. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a rival terrorist group, reportedly claimed to be keeping 30 of those hostages imprisoned. Some reports have suggested that organized crime syndicates in Gaza, which Hamas controls, may be keeping individual hostages or families in captivity independent of direct Hamas control.

Hamas took its hostages on October 7 as part of a massive, unprecedented terror assault it has dubbed the “al-Aqsa flood.” On that day, the jihadists invaded Israel and began indiscriminately killing civilians, raiding residential communities and executing entire families in door-to-door attacks. The terrorists filmed themselves abducting people, killing them, torturing them, desecrating the bodies of victims, and posted many of the videos to social media, including the profiles of their victims. Eyewitness and forensic evidence indicate that the terrorists engaged in multiple acts of gang rape, including at least one killing in which a woman was shot in the head in the middle of a gang rape. Authorities have also found evidence of Hamas terrorists killing and mutilating children, including decapitated and charred bodies of babies. Israeli officials estimate the death toll of the “al-Aqsa flood” to be upwards of 1,200 people. (Read more from “Hamas Hostages’ Whereabouts Unknown, Complicating Negotiations for Release” HERE)

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Israeli Hostages Released in Ceasefire: Families Reunited After Ordeal With Hamas Terrorists

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A third group of Israeli hostages arrived back in Israel on Sunday evening as part of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas terrorists.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that based on information from the Red Cross, which has acted as an intermediary between the IDF and the terrorists, the group of hostages that were released included 14 Israelis and three foreign nationals.

The Times of Israel reported that the group of released Israeli hostages included Abigail Idan, 4; Hagar Brodetz, 40, and her children Ofri, 10, Yuval, 9, and Oriya, 4; Chen Almog Goldstein, 48, and Agam, 17, Gal, 11 and Tal, 9; Alma Avraham, 84; Aviva Siegel, 64; sisters Ela, 8 and Dafna, 15, and Elyakim; Roni Krivoi, 25, a dual Russian-Israeli national.

One of the hostages that was released, Abigail Idan, who turned 4 while being held hostage by Hamas terrorists, is a dual U.S. citizen. Both of her parents were murdered by Hamas terrorists in Kfar Aza kibbutz during the October 7 attacks. (Read more from “Israeli Hostages Released in Ceasefire: Families Reunited After Ordeal With Hamas Terrorists” HERE)

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U.S. Navy Foils Terrorist Hijacking Attempt of Israeli-Owned Tanker

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In a dramatic turn of events, a U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Mason, successfully thwarted a terrorist hijacking attempt on the Liberian-flagged Central Park chemical tanker, which is owned by Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group. The incident occurred in the Gulf of Aden, where five armed gunmen attempted to seize control of the vessel.

Upon responding to a distress call from the tanker’s crew, the USS Mason intercepted the attempted hijacking, pursuing the ship towards Yemen. According to Fox News correspondent Jennifer Griffin, warning shots were fired by the U.S. Navy personnel during the pursuit, leading to the apprehension of the five armed hijackers. The terrorists had reportedly boarded the tanker from a skiff, attempting to break into the ship’s Citadel (safe room) where the crew had secured themselves.

This marks the second hijacking attempt on the same vessel in recent days, with Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists previously making a similar effort. In this latest incident, a Japanese destroyer provided assistance to the USS Mason during the interdiction, while two Chinese Navy warships in the vicinity did not offer support.

Despite the hijackers’ attempt to gain access to the safe room, the crew remained secure, prompting the terrorists to exit the vessel and attempt an escape back to Yemen. The U.S. Navy personnel, along with the support of a U.S. helicopter gunship, successfully apprehended the hijackers, who are currently under questioning by the U.S. military under counter-piracy authorities. The incident highlights the ongoing security challenges faced by maritime vessels in the strategically vital waters of the Gulf of Aden.

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Professor Barred from Campus Due to Misleading Video: Anti-Israel Activists Misrepresent Statements on Hamas (VIDEO)

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University of Southern California (USC) economics professor John Strauss, who is Jewish, has been barred from campus because of a doctored video circulated by anti-Israel activists who claim he said all Palestinians should be killed.

In fact, as the full video (clumsily included here by an anti-Israel activist) shows, Strauss was referring specifically to the Hamas terrorist organization. Video 1: ” … should be killed, and I hope they are.”

Video 2: ” You people are ignorant. Really ignorant. Hamas are murderers. That’s all they are. Every one of them should be killed, and I hope they are.”

Anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian, and Muslim activists only cited the former video in pushing for USC to take against Strauss.

The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday:

As [Strauss’s] remarks raced across the internet, his condemnation of Hamas was often excised, leaving only his “hope” for “all” to be killed. Captions and comments online framed his demand for “every one” to be killed in myriad, at times deceptive, ways. One Instagram post shared to millions of users claimed falsely that Strauss told the students, “[I] hope you get killed….”

(Read more from “Professor Barred from Campus Due to Misleading Video: Anti-Israel Activists Misrepresent Statements on Hamas (VIDEO)” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

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President Biden Addresses Hostage Situation with Hamas, Considers ‘Conditional Aid’ for Israel

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President Joe Biden Friday made his first public comments on the hostages released by Hamas after its Tuesday negotiated four-day ceasefire with Israel. . .

“From the moment Hamas kidnapped these people, I, along with my team, have worked around the clock to secure their release,” said Biden. . .

The Israeli government approved a deal Tuesday night that will see the Palestinian Hamas terror group release at up to 80 female, child, and elderly hostages over four days, in return for a pause in the fighting in the Gaza Strip. . .

Inside his own party, calls to condition U.S. aid to Israel on deescalation of Israeli attacks against the terrorist organization are growing.

Biden expressed his openness to consider conditional aid.

(Read more from “Another State Is Banning the Sale of New Gas-Powered Cars” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

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Biden Says His Own Diplomacy May Have Triggered Hamas Attack

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President Joe Biden said Friday that his own diplomacy may have pushed the terrorist organization Hamas to launch its brutal Oct. 7 attack on Israel which resulted in the raping, kidnapping and murdering of Israeli civilians.

Hamas released its first wave from what is expected to be a total of about 50 hostages Friday, including 13 Israeli civilians as well as 12 Thai nationals, in exchange for a pause in fighting with Israel. Biden gave a brief speech Friday about the release and touted the deal that followed negotiations between U.S., Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian officials. Following his speech, the president was asked what he was hearing from Arab leaders.

“I cannot prove what I’m about to say, but I believe one of the reasons Hamas struck when they did is because they knew I was working very closely with the Saudis and others in the region to bring peace to the region by having recognition of Israel and Israel’s right to exist,” the president said.

During former President Donald Trump’s administration, deals were struck between Israel and several Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and North Africa to establish formal diplomatic relations. Those countries included Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Sudan and Bahrain. Throughout his presidency, Biden had been working to expand the deal to establish formal recognition between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which has long been a friend of the Palestinian cause.

The president said last month he believes Hamas attacked Israel in an effort to stop Biden from striking a deal with Saudi Arabia, the Associated Press reported. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has also speculated such motives could have been behind Hamas’ attack. (Read more from “Biden Says His Own Diplomacy May Have Triggered Hamas Attack” HERE)

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Israeli Intelligence Minister Proposes Controversial Plan to Resettle Gazans Worldwide

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Israeli Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel has penned an op-ed in the Jerusalem Post advocating for a global refugee resettlement initiative aimed at relocating approximately 2 million Gazans outside of Israel. In her article, Gamliel asserts that Gaza, with its population that includes Hamas supporters, is a breeding ground for extremism, and a new approach is necessary to ensure the safety of Israeli communities.

The proposed scheme envisions moving Gazans to various countries around the world, with the expectation that once they are gone, Israeli communities can return to their homes and live securely. Gamliel frames this as a “win-win” solution, benefiting both Israelis and Gazans who would potentially live in wealthier countries.

However, Charlie Kirk raises concerns about the implications for the international community, especially cities like Paris, London, or Detroit, which would be expected to host individuals with diverse political affiliations, including those sympathetic to Hamas. His tweet criticizes Gamliel for attempting to shift the burden of dealing with Hamas sympathizers onto other nations, characterizing it as an attempt to make these individuals “our problem instead.”

Charlie Kirk expresses skepticism about the proclaimed benefits of the plan, emphasizing that it may strain the support for Israel among Western conservatives if such ideas persist. His remarks sparked controversy and discussions about the feasibility, ethics, and potential consequences of such a large-scale resettlement initiative.

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